Syfy’s debuted a new virtual reality app this weekend at Comic-Con. The app utilizes Google Cardboard to give viewers a 360 degree tour of the spaceship featured in the first episode of the series. Matthew Chiavelli, svp, Syfy Digital, said in a statement that:
At Syfy, we’re constantly looking for innovative ways to let fans experience and interact with our content, so virtual reality has been on our radar for a while. The Expanse, with its incredibly detailed, vast world, offers many environments for us to mine and bring to life, and made for the perfect project to launch in this space. We are thrilled to be the first series to utilize Google Cardboard in this way.
Syfy partnered with NBCUniversal Media Labs and IM360 to create the app. The Expanse visual effects team helped by keeping them in the loop to make sure the experience is authentic. Sanjay Macwan, svp and CTO, NBCUniversal Media Labs, adds:
It’s exciting to see this first of its kind Google Cardboard and NBCUniversal proof of concept come to life for Syfy’s The Expanse. Our Media Labs team leverages projects like this custom VR app to build ‘real life’ pilots that demonstrate innovation across NBCUniversal’s content portfolio. Based on its success, we’ll then be able to re-skin and scale the concept across our diverse set of businesses.
The app is available for iOS and Android and The Expanse premieres this December.